Nepal trekking permits 2026: the full list for tour operators

Nepal trekking permits are simple once you see the pattern, but the details change often enough to catch out anyone quoting from an old price list. Most treks need two or three documents: a TIMS card, an entry permit for the national park or conservation area the route crosses, and on some routes a local area permit or a restricted area permit. This guide lists which permits apply where, who issues them, the official fees we confirmed on 30 October 2026 and how permit costs should appear in a quote. Every fee below is a government or local authority fee, not a price for our trips, and each one should be reconfirmed before you quote a departure.

Which permits a trek needs: the short version

Start with the region, then add the permits that apply to the route. The table below covers the main trekking regions our partners sell.

Region or route	Permits normally needed	Licensed guide
Everest region (Khumbu)	Sagarmatha National Park entry permit; Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality local permit; TIMS card under Nepal Tourism Board rules (see below)	Required under NTB rules; the local municipality has disputed this in its area
Annapurna (Poon Hill, Sanctuary, Circuit)	Annapurna Conservation Area permit; TIMS card	Required on listed routes
Langtang	Langtang National Park entry permit; TIMS card	Required on listed routes
Manaslu Circuit	Restricted area permit; Manaslu Conservation Area permit; Annapurna Conservation Area permit for the section after the circuit joins the Annapurna region; TIMS card	Required
Upper Mustang	Restricted area permit; Annapurna Conservation Area permit; TIMS card	Required
Kanchenjunga	Restricted area permit for the specified areas of Taplejung district; conservation area permit; TIMS card	Required

Permits are issued per person and are not transferable. Treat the table as a starting point: the exact combination depends on the route and on where the trek starts and finishes. Our permits and visas page covers the visa side of the trip.

TIMS card and the licensed guide rule

The Trekkers' Information Management System card is administered by the Nepal Tourism Board. Under the revised provision that took effect on 31 March 2023, trekkers on listed routes in 14 regions must be accompanied by a licensed trekking guide and carry a TIMS card issued by a trekking agency. The 14 regions are Kanchenjunga, Makalu Barun, Everest, Rolwaling, Panchpokhari Bhairabkunda, Helambu, Langtang, Ganesh Himal and Ruby Valley, Manaslu, Annapurna, Mustang, Dhaulagiri, Dolpo and Humla.

Agencies buy TIMS cards through the board's online system, and each trekker receives an e-card with a QR code. The current fees published by the Nepal Tourism Board are:

TIMS card	Fee	Source, checked 30 October 2026
Citizens of SAARC countries	NPR 1,000	Nepal Tourism Board
All other nationalities	NPR 2,000	Nepal Tourism Board

The Everest region is the exception that causes most questions. Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality introduced its own local permit in 2017 and stopped checking TIMS cards in its area, and in 2023 it publicly disputed the guide requirement there. The Nepal Tourism Board still lists Everest among the 14 regions. In practice every trek we run in the Khumbu goes with a licensed guide, which also keeps insurance and rescue simple. Our TIMS card guide for tour operators goes into the detail.

Conservation area and national park permits

Most popular treks cross either a national park, managed by the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation, or a conservation area, managed by the National Trust for Nature Conservation. Each charges an entry fee per person.

Permit	Issued by	Fee, foreign nationals	Fee, SAARC nationals	Notes
Annapurna Conservation Area	National Trust for Nature Conservation (online, or at its counters)	NPR 3,000, tax included	NPR 1,000, tax included	Single entry. Permits bought at a check-post are charged double. Children under 10 do not need a permit.
Sagarmatha National Park	Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation	NPR 3,000	NPR 1,500	Rate from the park's official brochure; confirm before quoting.
Manaslu Conservation Area	National Trust for Nature Conservation	Confirm the current fee with us before quoting		Needed together with the Manaslu restricted area permit.
Langtang National Park	Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation	Confirm the current fee with us before quoting		Needed for Langtang valley treks.

All fees above were checked on 30 October 2026 against the issuing body's own website or publication. The double charge for Annapurna permits bought at a check-post is the main reason to have every permit arranged before the group leaves Kathmandu or Pokhara.

Local area permits: Khumbu Pasang Lhamu and others

Nepal's local governments can levy their own fees, and the best known is the Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality entry permit for the Everest region. According to a July 2024 report, the municipality raised its fee from the 2024/25 fiscal year to NPR 3,000 per person for foreign visitors from outside SAARC, and NPR 2,000 for visitors from SAARC countries and China. Trekkers pay this in addition to the Sagarmatha National Park fee.

Other rural municipalities have introduced or discussed their own fees over the years, and these are the charges most likely to change at short notice. They are one reason we confirm the full permit set for each departure rather than relying on a fixed list. For the flight side of an Everest programme, see our guide to Ramechhap airport and Lukla flights.

Restricted area permits: where they apply

Parts of 13 districts, mostly near the northern border, are restricted areas. Trekking there needs a restricted area permit from the Department of Immigration, applied for through a registered trekking agency and paid in US dollars. The current fee table published by the Nepal Tourism Board includes the following:

Restricted area	Fee per person (USD)
Upper Mustang	50 per day
Upper Dolpa	50 per day
Manaslu (Gorkha)	September to November: 100 per week, then 15 per day. December to August: 75 per week, then 10 per day
Tsum Valley (Gorkha)	September to November: 40 per week, then 7 per day. December to August: 30 per week, then 7 per day
Manang (Nar and Phu area)	September to November: 100 per week, then 15 per day. December to August: 75 per week, then 15 per day
Humla	50 per week, then 10 per day
Taplejung (Kanchenjunga), Sankhuwasabha, Solukhumbu	20 per week for the first four weeks, then 25 per week
Dolakha, Rasuwa	20 per week

Two recent changes matter for agents:

• Upper Mustang and Upper Dolpa. In November 2025 the Cabinet decided to replace the flat USD 500 for the first 10 days in Upper Mustang with USD 50 per person per day. The Nepal Tourism Board now lists USD 50 per person per day for both Upper Mustang and Upper Dolpa, so clients pay only for the days they spend in the area. Some older fee tables still show the old structure, so do not quote from them.
• Solo trekkers and guide ratios. In March 2026 the Department of Immigration announced that individual trekkers can now obtain restricted area permits, where previously permits were issued only to groups. Every applicant must still apply through a registered trekking agency and trek with a licensed guide. Under the rules the department restated at the same time, one guide may lead a maximum of seven trekkers and the agency carries full responsibility for emergency rescue. The application process has moved online.

Restricted area routes are often the best value for experienced repeat clients, and several of them are also good options outside the main seasons. Our article on which treks work in winter covers seasonal choices.

Documents and lead times for groups

Permits are issued per person against passport details, so the quality of the rooming list decides how smoothly the permit work goes. For each trekker we need:

• A clear passport copy, valid for the whole trip, with the name exactly as it appears in the passport.
• Nationality, which decides the SAARC or non-SAARC rate.
• Trek route and dates, including entry and exit points.
• For restricted areas, the Nepal visa details. Since March 2026 foreign trekkers can apply using the visa application number (submission ID) generated when they apply for their visa from home, rather than waiting for a visa in the passport.
• Insurance details and an emergency contact, which we hold for the trek.

Permit type	When to send documents	Why
TIMS, national park and conservation area permits	With the final rooming list, at least two weeks before arrival	Lets us issue permits before the group reaches the trailhead and avoid check-post charges
Restricted area permits	As early as possible once names are final, and no later than the deadline we set for each departure	Department of Immigration processing, US dollar payment and any name corrections take time
Name changes after issue	Avoid where possible	Permits are non-transferable and non-refundable

The wider booking sequence, from flights to hotels to permits, is set out in our planning timeline for agents.

Common permit mistakes we see

Most permit problems we deal with are avoidable. They usually come from one of these:

• Names that do not match the passport. A missing middle name or a married name on the rooming list can mean a permit has to be reissued. Ask clients to copy their name exactly from the passport data page.
• Late passport copies. For standard treks this can push permit work into the last day before departure. For restricted areas it can put the departure date at risk.
• Quoting from an old fee list. Local area fees and the Upper Mustang structure have both changed recently. A quote built on old figures leaves the agent to absorb the difference.
• Forgetting the second permit. Manaslu and Upper Mustang need a conservation area permit as well as the restricted area permit, and Everest needs both the park permit and the local permit.
• Assuming solo travel is the same everywhere. Individual trekkers can now get restricted area permits, but they still need an agency and a licensed guide. The same applies on the listed TIMS routes.
• Route changes on the trail. A group that decides mid-trek to add a side valley may enter an area its permits do not cover. Agree any variations before departure so the right permits are in place.

None of these needs more than a clear process. We send each partner a short document checklist with the booking confirmation, and we check the rooming list against the passport copies before any permit is applied for. If a fee changes between booking and travel, we tell you before the final invoice rather than after.

How permit costs appear in a DMC quote

Government permit fees are pass-through costs. A good quote shows them separately from the land arrangements, at the official rate in force on the date of travel, for three reasons:

• Fees change. Local fees have risen in recent years and the Upper Mustang fee structure changed in November 2025. A separate line lets you adjust a quote without renegotiating the whole programme.
• Nationality matters. SAARC nationals pay lower rates for several permits, and Khumbu charges SAARC and Chinese visitors a different rate. Mixed groups need a per-person breakdown.
• Currency. Restricted area permits are paid in US dollars, while TIMS, park, conservation area and local fees are set in Nepali rupees.

Ask your ground operator for a permit line per person, with the issuing body named, and check that the guide and agency arrangement is included where the rules require it. If an operator cannot tell you which permits a route needs, our checklist on how to choose a Nepal tour operator may help.

For travel agents: how to package it

What to include

• All permits for the route, arranged by the ground operator before the trek starts.
• A licensed guide for every group, at the ratio the rules require, and porters as needed.
• For Everest, return flights to Lukla with the routing stated, and a spare day before the international flight.
• For restricted areas, a document deadline written into your booking conditions.

Buffers

• Build the permit document deadline into your own client timeline, ahead of ours.
• Keep a contingency line in the costing for fee changes on long-lead bookings.

Who it suits

The standard regions (Everest, Annapurna, Langtang) suit most first-time trekkers. Restricted area treks such as Manaslu, Upper Mustang and Kanchenjunga suit experienced clients who want quieter trails and are happy with a longer permit process. For these routes, set expectations early: the permit work starts well before the trip, the guide stays with the group throughout, and the itinerary is harder to change once permits are issued. Clients who understand this up front rarely see the rules as a burden.

Upsells

• Pair an Annapurna or Mustang trek with a few days in Pokhara before or after the trail.
• For clients choosing between the two big regions, our comparison of Everest and Annapurna helps match the trek to the client.
• Browse current routes on our trekking page.

Want permit-inclusive programmes with clear government fee lines? Become a partner and our operations desk will send net rates and the current permit schedule for your routes.